The Johannesburg Business School (JBS) has introduced a Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) in Digital Transformation course, to equip future leaders with fourth industrial revolution (4IR) skills and capabilities.
A faculty of the University of Johannesburg, JBS says its DPhil in Digital Transformation is considered as one of the first digital-centric business programmes at South Africa's highest level of education.
It was introduced in line with the JBS's goal of evolving into a premier business school for the digital era, it says.
The course is targeted at business executives and organisational leaders who are poised to introduce and be the frontrunners of digital transformation efforts at their organisations, according to JBS.
The syllabus includes advanced research methods, supervised research and special topics in digital transformation, which dissects various digital themes, such as cloud computing, internet of things, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, 3D printing, blockchain and data science, which will allow the re-imagining of new digital business models.
Professor Lungile Ntsalaze, head of the JBS DPhil in Digital Transformation programme, says 4IR technologies are fast becoming a part of our daily lives, and business leaders need to incorporate them into various aspects of their operations, he notes.
"The transformation to a digital future is happening right now. Everyone has to be prepared for the disruption that it will cause.
“The DPhil programme is that very tool that will help make organisations future-fit. The technologies are bursting out of laboratories and making their way into the world on a marketable scale. Our programme prepares students to take advantage of the new opportunities that will arise from this disruption," explains Ntsalaze.
Unlike traditional doctoral programmes, this particular doctoral degree is a balanced mix of theory and practice, with a supervisory panel to benefit students' work from a diverse pool of industry experts, adds Ntsalaze.
This programme is accessible to anyone with a Master's Degree from any field of study.
Mentors are on hand to support candidates throughout the research proposal development stages.
The dire digital skills gap in SA, coupled with evolving business strategies, prompted local tertiary institutions to intensify their rollout of tech-focused courses.
The Witwatersrand Business School has introduced a master's degree in digital business, while the Durban University of Technology offers a post-graduate 4IR upskilling and reskilling programme. In 2019, the University of Johannesburg launched a 4IR BA degree.
While there is a gap between digitisation and the lack of skills, which has increased rates of unemployment, Ntsalaze believes business skills are often overlooked.
"In the not-so-distant past, countering unemployment meant creating jobs, upskilling employees’ digital skills or encouraging entrepreneurship. These interventions have not worked. Instead, we need digitally-skilled workers with good business acumen,” he concludes.
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